China hopes that the new U.S. administration of Joe Biden will “learn a lesson’’ from the crisis that bilateral relations suffered while Donald Trump was in office, an official said.
China also urged the U.S. to seek to improve ties with Beijing, the Foreign Ministry’s spokesman, Zhao Lijian, said on Tuesday.
“We hope that the new U.S. administration will try to learn a lesson from the drawbacks of the Trump administration’s policy; will consider China and the Sino-U.S. relations objectively and rationally as well as adhere to the policy of a positive and constructive dialogue.
“And will, together with China, promote the return of the Sino-U.S. relations to sustainable and healthy development,’’ Zhao said at a news briefing.
Zhao pointed out that, over the recent years, the Trump administration made numerous mistakes in relations with China, as it considered Beijing to be a rival and took steps that undermined China’s interests.
He added that the two countries should strengthen their cooperation since they shared common interests and carried the responsibility for the maintenance of international peace.
“We have repeatedly said that China and the U.S. … share common interests and bear responsibility for the protection of the international peace, stability and promotion of the global development.’’
In March 2018, Trump launched a major trade war with China and accused it of currency manipulation and theft of U.S. intellectual property.
In 2019, Trump ordered the U.S. Department of Commerce to ban U.S. companies from doing business with China’s tech giant, Huawei.
This step was followed by further sanctions put on other Chinese media companies.
The Trump administration also publicly questioned the legitimacy of the Chinese Communist Party and stepped up relations with Taiwan, violating the consensus reached by Washington and Beijing regarding the island.
